Mille in French means “thousand” and while there really aren’t a thousand crepes, it might seem like it! The recipe is a potchkey but worth it. It is really 3 short recipes that can be made ahead and then assembled up to 1 day before serving.
Elegant, delicious and family friendly. Your kids can help assemble the cake.
Mille Crepe
Servings
Ingredients
- 2 large eggs
- 3/4 cup milk
- 1/2 cup water
- 1 cup flour
- 3 tablespoons melted butter
- Fresh chopped herbs for savory crepes and 2 teaspoons vanilla extract and 3 teaspoons sugar for sweet crepes
- Butter for coating the pan
- 2 ¼ cups whole milk
- 6 egg yolks
- 2/3 cup sugar
- 1/3 cup cornstarch
- 1 vanilla bean split lengthwise
- Pinch of salt
- 1 8- ounce jar of raspberry preserves
Instructions
- For the Crepes:
- In a blender, combine all of the ingredients and pulse for 10 seconds. Place the crepe batter in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour. (This allows the bubbles to subside so the crepes will be less likely to tear during cooking.) The batter will keep for up to 48 hours.
- Heat a small non-stick pan. Add butter to coat. Pour 1 ounce of batter into the center of the pan and swirl to spread evenly. Cook for 30 seconds and flip. Cook for another 10 seconds and remove to the cutting board. Lay them out flat so they can cool, you can stack the crepes, they will not stick to each other.
- Continue until all batter is gone. After they have cooled you can store the crepes in sealable plastic bags in the refrigerator for several days or in the freezer for up to two months.
- For the vanilla bean pastry cream:
- In medium bowl, whisk together 1/2 cup milk, egg yolks, 1/3 cup sugar, and cornstarch. 2. Transfer the remaining 1 3/4 cups milk to heavy medium saucepan. Scrape in seeds from vanilla bean and the seed and the pod to the pan and add the salt. Sprinkle the remaining 1/3 cup sugar over, letting sugar sink undisturbed to bottom. Set pan over moderate heat and bring to simmer without stirring. 3. Whisk hot milk mixture, then gradually whisk into egg yolk mixture (this is called tempering). You want to do this slowly or you will have scrambled eggs. 4. Return to saucepan over moderate heat and cook, whisking constantly, until pastry cream simmers and thickens, about 1 minute. Remove from heat, discard vanilla pod, and whisk cream until smooth. Transfer to bowl and press plastic wrap or parchment directly onto surface. Chill until cold, about 4 hours. (Pastry cream can be made ahead and refrigerated, wrapped well with plastic wrap or parchment on surface, up to 3 days.)
- Raspberry Glaze
- Heat 1 8-ounce jar of raspberry preserves over medium heat until the preserves are soft and fairly liquid.
- Pass the preserves through a mesh strainer to remove the seeds.
- Assemble the Cake Place one crepe on a cake plate. Lightly brush the raspberry preserves over the crepe. Spread one tablespoon of pastry cream evenly over the crepe. Layer another crepe on top and continue with preserves and pastry cream until the final crepe has been added. Leave the top plain.
- Chill the cake for 2 hours or overnight to firm up. Top with fresh whipped cream and berries.
Hi Chef Laura,
what is the success rate for a first timer mille crepe cake?
I’ll like to bake this for my mom birthday this november and i need a fail proof as i have lots to do at home and my baking hours are limited.
I’ll get scan pan as recommended. But how many layers can this recipe go for 9″?
TIA!
you can make and freeze the crepes and go as high as you want. this recipe should give you a dozen crepes..i always end up throwing out or eating the first crepes..as they are never perfect until the pan is completely heated up and you get your timing down!
enjoy!
I was so scared of the pastry cream!!! However, it tastes delicious 🙂
i use a 9 inch non-stick scan pan (my favorite non-stick pan!) and it works fine.
you could easily go bigger-but not smaller as i think the crepes would start sliding around too much when being stacked.
have Fun!
my daughter sent this recipe and I plan to prepare it do Shvuot.What size pan for the creeps.The pan I use for blitzes would make too small a disc for all this work.
FYI – Chef Laura is notorious for not wanting to substitute and I don’t blame her, but for those looking for a way to make a parve pastry cream consider this recipe – http://www.joyofkosher.com/recipes/coffee-crepe-cake/ . I also find coconut milk really makes a good substitution for heavy cream it has more fat than many of the others.
you need the fattiness of the cream to make a proper pastry cream.
can you technically use rice milk? yes, but it won’t taste good.
Kosher cooking isn’t about substitutions. it is about cooking real food within dietary limitations and understanding your ingredients. kosher creme brulee is not as good as a real one and cookies made with margarine are horrible.
kosher food is about accepting the ingredients you have and learning how to make each one of them SING on your plate and in your palate.
Chefs in non-kosher restaurants would not be caught dead using faux cream and butter becasue it isn’t good. they would lose their reputations. But, if they serve great fruit and chocolate made into great dishes, they will be lauded.
home cooks can do the same thing. the food will taste better and be better for you. keeping the integrity of the ingredients is important for each ingredient to taste it’s best. keep it real!
substitutions give kosher food a bad name and that is why the cuisine will never be accepted as just GOOD FOOD. too many people faking their way through recipes instead of learning to properly use what they have at hand.
not every recipe is meant for every meal. save it for a dairy meal and if you NEVER eat dairy for health reasons, then just use all jelly. the dessert will not be the same but still good.
Your mille crepe looks very delicious! I didnt get to try this when I went to Malacca rlncetey…we were too full! On my way back I was thinking maybe I should attempt to make it at home. Thanks for sharing this recipe!
it can be but WHY? some things are best made without FAUX ingredients and items that take away from clean simple flavors.
fake milk is disgusting and margarine is equally disgusting and actively bad for your heart. so WHY?
instead do a recipe that includes fruit or bittersweet chocolate and no need for ersatz ingredients.
keep your food REAL and it will
taste better and be better for you!
can this be made parev?
Is it possible to use a non-dairy substitute in the pastry cream recipe? If so, which one do you recommend? (I typically use rice milk as a non-dairy substitute in my recipes.)
the pastry cream kind of melts into the crepes and the tart preserves highlight the vanilla bean and the whole thing is a symphony in your mouth.
crepes are one of those basic recipes that is a pull-out of thin air lunches, dinners and desserts. you can stuff them stack them or saute them. this cake would be awesome for SHAVUOT!
i might have to convince my husband to make it again for the Chag.
i can certainly make it myself, but it is better when made by someone else:-)
Amazing, a simple crepe turned into a masterful cake, can’t wait to try it.